Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-81-415-1385: High Voltage Maintenance Corporation; Mentor, Ohio

Details

• Personal Author:
  Kominsky, John R. ; Lipscomb, Jane A.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Environmental and breathing zone samples were analyzed for 1,1,1- trichloroethane (630206) (TCE), chlorinated benzenes, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) at High Voltage Maintenance Corporation (SIC-3610), Mentor, Ohio, in October and November 1981. Evaluation was requested by Local 673 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers because of concern of exposure during the servicing and maintenance of electrical power distribution equipment. Questionnaires were administered to 21 workers. Blood samples were obtained. TCE and PCB air concentrations were 908 to 3519 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) and 32.4 to 81.3 micrograms (microg)/m3, respectively. The corresponding NIOSH recommended standards are 1900mg/m3 and 1microg/m3. The benzenes were below current standards. Wipe samples showed PCB concentrations of 1 to 220microg per 100 square centimeters in various areas. The NIOSH standard for PCB wipe samples is 0.5microg/m3. Workers reported eye and skin irritation, and skin rash. Average blood PCB concentrations were approximately twice that of the upper limit for persons not occupationally exposed. Six workers showed elevated gamma-glutamyl-transpeptidase or alanine-amino-transferase activities. The authors conclude that the workers are exposed to potentially toxic TCE and PCB concentrations. Recommendations include thorough decontamination, medical monitoring, and use of respirators according to OSHA regulations.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Air Pollution, Indoor Blood Electricity Environmental Exposure Hydrocarbons Occupational Health Polychlorinated Biphenyls Safety Trichloroethanes
• Keywords:
  1,1,1-trichloroethane Air-contamination Blood PCB Breathing-zone Chlorinated-hydrocarbons Electric-power-generation Hazards-Confirmed HETA-81-415-1385 Industrial-exposures Liver Enzymes NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report OSHA Region 5 PCBs Polychlorinated Biphenyls Tetrachlorobenzene Trichlorobenzene

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA814151385
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  22 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Ruhe, Raymond L.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00149666
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB85-177525
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 81-415-1385, 1983 Oct ; :1-21
• CAS Registry Number:
  1,1,1,2-Tetrachloroethane (CAS RN 630-20-6)
• Editor(s):
  Williams, Betty C. ; Johnson, Patty
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1984
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  361 - Electric Distribution Equipment - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:4b14542ed983d45d670776f1d2508163cfb8ff1aa1377240c11ebb595fba199ef4610956b49d11fb42350be6733057cf1c9fc996f5a479c20248d4bf593bbbd6
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172691/cdc_172691_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.64 MB ]